


Just Super

by kbegger



Category: K-pop, VIXX
Genre: Alternate Universe - Creatures & Monsters, Angst, Cat/Human Hybrids, Dreamwalking, Fae & Fairies, Familiars, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Vampires, Witches, aswang, oc is suicidal, will o' the whisp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-25
Packaged: 2019-03-21 23:07:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13751121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kbegger/pseuds/kbegger
Summary: "Coffee's fine and all, but tonight I'm in need of something…stronger. I think you can help me with that." His words came out slowly, smoothly, deeply. It was terrifying and froze her more than the cold air. It didn't help that Suyun now noticed he had fangs.orHow Vixx decided to adopt their new pet "Snack"Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human





	1. coffee

**Author's Note:**

> This is a different AU than 'What kind of sick **** turns a kid?'
> 
> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

All mythical beings feed off humans in some way.   
   
. . .  
   
Suyun walked with her head down, frustrated, kicking at the rocks in the unpaved alley. It was a cold night and she probably needed to put on a heavier coat but she had been embracing reckless and stupid for a long time, unconcerned with death. She wondered what it would be like to freeze to death. She heard it was peaceful once you got past the horrible parts of hypothermia. Most of the snow had melted off but the sky threated to give the city more. It matched her mind. She felt stormy and couldn't help thinking the same things over and over again. That's what depression does to you.   
   
"You know this really isn't the type of place you should wander around alone in. You never know what will happen when you don't pay attention."   
   
Suyun nearly jumped out of her skin at the voice's intrusion to her brooding. It was a deep and rough voice that belonged to a man leaning against the cinderblock building she was passing. He was illuminated by the orange overhead light. He was probably a foot taller than her with bleached hair and a piercing gaze. He smiled but it didn't reach his eyes.   
   
"Thanks for the tip. Do you know where I can get good coffee around here?" She responded trying to seem friendly and hoped that seeming confident would soften his predatory look.   
   
"Are you asking me on a date?" He smirked and walked closer to her. Not the effect she wanted. She had only wanted to go on a walk to clear her head, not to be hassled by strangers. She was starting to regret having nothing in her pockets but her house keys. As he neared she could see that he only wore a leather coat and skinny jeans but no shirt. Idiot.  
   
"Ha, only if you are paying." She joked as he fell into sync with her pace, kicking gravel with her. "Really though, I'm only looking for coffee. I don't know this area well" She lied. She lived half a mile from where they were. Suyun barely saw it when he pushed her against the chain link fence opposite to the building. While the fence rattled he leaned and whispered "Liar." Suyun bit her lower lip and found that she was having a hard time meeting his gaze. Her mind, before preoccupied with thunderous thoughts went blank. All she could feel was the primal instincts telling her this might be the end and sexual assault was not the way she wanted to end it. She might just have to play him, give him a taste of what he wanted so that she stood some kind of chance. "So I take it you aren't a fan of coffee?" Suyun said, surprised she could keep the panic out of her voice. She still wasn't looking up but she reached for the lapels of his jacket pretending to just calmly be admiring his abs, which she then brushed with her fingers. She yelped when she came to a damp spot on his sides she hadn't noticed before. She realized then that she was touching a gaping wound and pulled her hands back in surprise which he grabbed and shoved against the fence. This brought her attention back to his face which still had a smirk and didn't looked as pained as he should.   
   
"Coffee's fine and all, but tonight I'm in need of something…stronger. I think you can help me with that." His words came out slowly, smoothly, deeply. It was terrifying and froze her more than the cold air. It didn't help that Suyun now noticed he had fangs. "Don't worry. I only need a little" He whispered against her neck before she felt his fangs burrowed into her. The pain made her struggle against him, trying to push him away. Would she fight it when she would try to end it herself if it didn't end here? With that thought instead of pushing at him she pulled him closer, knitting her fingers around his back. "Fine. Take it." She breathed in his ear. Maybe this would be an ok way to go. "I don't want to live anyway so let's just get this over with." Suyun said with deep weariness before she slowly faded out of consciousness.   
   
The girl slumped in the man's arms and he took it as his cue to finish. He licked the broken skin shut and in a few minutes his own wound would completely close as well.   
   
Another man materialized in the alley with a flash of green light and ran up to him. "Wonshik! Are you ok? Hakyeon said that you…" He nervously eyed the girl, limp in Wonshik's arms and trailed off.   
   
"Taekwoon, don't look at me like that. She still has a pulse. What type of enforcer would I be if I killed her?"  
   
"Right, sorry, I didn't mean to…" He trailed off feeling shame from the glare he was getting. Wonshik saw it and sighed feeling bad for snapping at him when he was just concerned.   
   
"Help me check her pockets for ID. I probably should have thought of that beforehand but the hole in my side was a bit distracting."  
   
"Seriously though?...Are you good? because it looks like you got stabbed…" Taekwoon said pointing at the closing wound.  
   
"Yes, Mom. I'm good. Now would you please get over here and help me?" Wonshik cut him off while laying the girl on the ground. They picked her pockets but found nothing.   
   
"Well…Shit…" The two looked at each other with uncertain expressions. "She's not going to wake up for a while is she?" Taekwoon said defeatedly.   
   
"Nope"  
   
"And it's too cold to leave her here."  
   
"Yup"  
   
Wonshik looked up at other boy with an apologetic look. "My bad?" he tried to which Taekwoon rolled his eyes.   
   
"Nothing we can do about it now. Let's go home." He said shuffling away as Wonshik lifted the girl over his shoulder.  
   
"How did you find me anyway?" Wonshik said, finally dawning on him that he didn't have enough fear and confusion in him for the fae to find him that quickly.  
   
"Hyuk has a GPS on your phone. Hakyeon felt one of your charms break and Hyuk said it's faster than casting a tracking spell."  
   
"What is a GPS?"  
   
"It's an electronic thing that you can use to track people or navigate. It works just as well as Hakyeon 's spells."  
   
"ah, I see……….….wait that little brat is tracking me!"  
   
. . .  
   
To tease Hakyeon Wonshik deposited the unconscious girl on Hakyeon 's bed.   
   
"Are you really going to make me sleep on the couch? We have a guest room too."   
   
Wonshik scoffed "use that then stupid." He had walked right into that one and pouted with embarrassment. Wonshik left to go patch himself up as Taekwoon and Jaehwan came down the hallway, Jaehwan ruffled Hakyeon 's hair laughing at his pout. "You can sleep with me. I don't mind."   
   
The witch smiled and nuzzled into the touch. Taekwoon rolled his eyes at the affectionate, overly cutesy boys. "I would say get a room, but sounds like it's been decided. Get going." He said sarcastically to break up the moment before they got too intimate and he in turn would be sent gagging. He made himself busy with putting an IV in Suyun 's arm to get her some fluid's and electrolytes for recovery. Hakyeon narrowed his eyes at the rude comment and retorted "oh, bite me. You get mean when you haven't fed. When did you last eat?"  
   
"I'm fine, but Jaehwan are you hungry? Hakyeon is asking to get bitten." Jaehwan grinned his scary shark teeth grin. Anything that Jaehwan got his mouth on died. "Don't encourage him" Hakyeon complained, turning his glare to Jaehwan.   
   
They were interrupted by a black cat weaving its way between their legs to jump on the bed and sniff at the girl. "Hyuk let the woman sleep, get out of here." The fae said with a glare. The small black cat shifted into a tall boy who still had many cat like features. He brushed her hair back and noted "She's pretty. I think we should keep her. Can I have her as a pet?" The boy said with joking enthusiasm bouncing over to the witch.   
   
Hakyeon had picked an affectionate, cute cat when he made his familiar but under estimated how mischievous and fearless the cat could get as it left its meek kitten stage behind. "Why would I get you a pet? You are the pet." Hakyeon said pulling the maknae off of the bed, using combinations of ancient Chinese characters that floated off of his skin to turn the boy back into a cat. "Grumpy old man. Get me a girlfriend." Hakyeon rolled his eyes and dropped the wriggling cat, who would probably be back on the bed as soon as he was distracted.   
   
"Do you think Hongbin will be back in time to wipe her memory?" Jaehwan asked Hakyeon.  
   
"Unfortunately I doubt it. Besides I don't think she would be strong enough by then. It took Wonshik a lot of blood to recover from that kind of wound. Her blood pressure is really low and her heart rate is high so as to keep everything moving. It's best not to strain her. Now everyone out. This isn't a zoo." Hakyeon nagged and with finality, firmly shut the door behind them. He abruptly opened the door again and hissed at Hyuk to get out of there.   
   
. . .


	2. Souvenir

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

*Side note-Hyuk doesn't have a room because he sleeps everywhere. 

Wonshik fell onto his bed and had a stare down with the ceiling. The wound was closing nicely and the balm he borrowed from Hakyeon would take care of the venom. It was helping the burning sensation of the wound but the balm was also making him light headed. After making a quick report of the incident he reached for his phone to text their dream walker.

Ravi: Hey Hongbin will you be home tomorrow?

Bean: Yup

Ravi: cool. Just as a heads up we have a guest. 

Bean: Is this one of Hyuk's friends? That fire elemental, Jackson I think, nearly burned our house down last time. Not in the mood for anything that is particularly destructive or that I would have to clean up after. Like you lazy bums would ever take care of it >:(

Ravi: Haha :D that’s why we love you <3\. Nope, not destructive. I kinda went overboard while drinking and ended up draining this girl too low. She will be pretty lethargic. So she's recovering here since I don't know where to drop her off. 

Bean: Try the hospital >:C

Bean: Does this human have a name?

Ravi: well…for now I'm just going to call her snack. 

Bean: Idiot

Ravi: What? I think it fits

Bean: Dumbest roommate ever.

Ravi: So how is the trip going? Is that Arabian prince paying out the nose to have you poke around his head?

Bean: And then some. I think you would like it here. There's lots of nice sunlight, swimming and all kinds of fancy buildings. I even hit up the aquarium thing with him. Did I mention sun?

Ravi: >:P sun is yucky. Just bring me back a souvenir. And one for Snack too.

Bean: psh! whatever, anyway don't think I haven't noticed the subject change. What happened?

Ravi: life

Bean: Kim Wonshik you have one minute to explain before I call a psychic to read your mind. A real psychic, don't be a smart ass. 

Ravi: seems like you already are one. Or rather you are both. 

Bean: WONSHIK!!!

Ravi: Fine. I was chasing a rouge scorpion man and got stung. But I smooshed him so we're all good. 

Bean: You worry me : /

Ravi: Its part of my job. 

Bean: still, isn't this like the fifth time in a month that you've had a close call?

Ravi: On a different note if she's still asleep when you get here could you check her dreams? She seemed…off? I guess. Not like an out to get us kind of off. More like mentality off. 

Bean: Alright. Well, I have stuff to do before I come home and seems like you won't address the real topic so I'm off. No more fighting venomous creatures tonight. 

Ravi: but… D: but Hongbin!

Bean: fine, go ahead

Ravi: :P J/K bye!

 

Hongbin was right though. The enforcers had been seeing a spike in rouge creatures. It seemed like a violent and deadly bloodlust was falling on their city like a fog. According to his daytime counterparts who worked on the police force, even humans were getting more violent and crime rates were up. It had been a long time since there were revolutionaries trying to take over and subjugate humans so they could walk around freely.

Of course history was pocked with events either instigated by supernaturals or used to their advantage. Some of the biggest events in history were attempts to rule; the black plaque, the crusades, WWII, Mongol conquest, and European colonization, just to name a few. Even in modern day there were isolated incidents around the world like parts of Africa, South America, the Middle East and annoyingly right across the border from their territory in North Korea. 

But this metaphorical fog had him worried. It was a headache he did not need. None of them had proof, just a hunch. It had the markers though. He suspected that there was strange and subtle spell work going on. He had had Hakyeon working on deciphering it but they had next to nothing to go off of. Most of the time Hakyeon couldn't feel anything was amiss or wasn't sure it was some other kind of work interfering unintentionally. Wonshik couldn't help but think their city was a test batch on a new spell. What a messed up world poor snack would be released back into, he thought to himself. He regretted naming her, even if it was as detached as naming a cow hamburger. 

. . .

Suyun woke bleary eyed, confused and brimming with slowly formed questions. Where was she? How did she get here? What time was it? Why is there an IV in her arm?(the thought immediately followed by taking it out.) What is this place? Who was their decorator because everything in the room seemed to be antique and pretty in a masculine way. The usual questions asked when one finds themselves to be lost upon awakening. She wandered over to a note taped to the door scrawled with messy handwriting. 

"Sorry about last night. We didn't want to leave you in the cold so we brought you here. There are some spare clothes on the dresser that you can have since yours got bloody. There are also clean towels sitting on the bathroom counter and help yourself to whatever is in the fridge. (Except for the gross stuff on the left side. Trust me you don't want it.) Unfortunately we have to keep you here until we get back because it's safer for all of us if you don't know where you are. So, all exits are sealed. That and we'll want to check on you to make sure you are strong enough to go home. Again Sorry! Please make yourself at home. <3 Hakyeon" 

Today was Saturday and next to no one would notice she's missing. If it was a work day she would be in trouble at work. She would definitely get an earful, if not fired. They better let her go. She started with a shower and the new clothes. Before she got far out of the bathroom door she nearly tripped over a black cat dead set on rubbing against her shins affectionally. The action made her feel at ease and she picked the cat up to pet him. "Hi little guy, aren't you a cutie" She remarked with a soft smile gracing her face. She scratched behind his ears absent mindedly as she wandered around the house. It felt like snooping when she would try doors to find them locked. Or like child proofing. 

The rest of the house had the same feel as the bedroom. Lots of antiques, hardwood floors and a mix of paneled walls and exposed brick. But the kitchen had relatively new appliances and there was an xbox hooked to the tv in the living room. What was really odd was that there were no windows, bad fire safety on the builders part since there was a large fire place in the living room. It seemed huge, rows of rooms down one long hall way leading to a large open area that the kitchen, dining and living room all wrapped in one. After exploring for a while she went to the fridge to see what all the fuss was about with the left side. On the right side was normal stuff but the left had many foreign, alien looking things of various textures, slime, odd plants, things that were heavily pickled. Some of the meat looked like organs from God knows what. There were blood bags as well. She regretted opening the left side. But the grossness didn't defeat her hunger. She grew up with dinners in front of the TV, even ones about crime scene investigation which is off putting for most. She was able to dig up some milk and cereal, not really feeling up to cooking. The cat sat on the bar stool next to hers and pawed at her hand wanting to still be petted. "We should probably feed you too huh? You little trouble maker. Where do we find your food bowl?" she said ruffling the fur on his head when she finished eating. Hyuk tapped into the psychic connection he had with his master as the sound of that. "Mayday! Mayday! Quick conjure a food bowl somewhere in the house! She thinks I'm a real cat and that I'm hungry!" 

"Hyuk, can you relax? I'm busy"

"But Hyung, I'm pretty sure humans leave out food for normal pets. Sungjae leaves food out for his cat Sami."

"Is Wonshik 's room locked? Because you can just pretend it's in there. He's pretty dead to the world when he sleeps anyway." Hakyeon responded distractedly. "hm….wait there is another thing humans leave out for their cats…where do you think I should put a litter box?" His master mused jokingly. 

"You can just say it's in Wonshik 's room and I'll pee in your shoes and call it good" Hyuk then quickly added. "Don't zap me, she's holding me! I'm just kidding!" knowing that Hakyeon would demolish him for such a thing. He could feel Hakyeon turn his full attention to the link now. "How is she?"

"She's fine. She's been exploring, your seals are working though so nothing to worry about. She feels a little weak but I don't think she will drop me so I'd say for loosing half her blood she's doing well."

"mm, that's good. Wait you are letting someone hold you? You never let anyone do that! I'm pissed, you little traitor!" 

"Well what can I say? She's a pretty female, she smells nice and she gives the best head scratches. She's on a level you will never achieve." Hyuk then sent a vague sensation of sticking his tongue out mockingly at the witch. He was feeling bold having a literal human shield to hide behind. 

"Just stay out of trouble ok? No shifting in front of her. I think Hongbin will be home first today so when he gets home you can go off to do it. But do it properly. Don't be lazy."

"I'll consider it. Over and out." The maknae said deviously and Hakyeon let it go in favor of helping one of his regulars. 

By the time they finished their exchange she gave up looking for the cat's amenities and assumed that the cat's owner was in fact an ass for not letting the cat have access to such things. She wished she knew how much longer she would be held prisoner. She felt pretty aimless now that she had readied herself for the day. She did have one final thing she really needed to work on but felt weird doing in an unfamiliar house. But if it was really part of her short term plan she would have to get over unfamiliar things. Finding a pen and a pad of paper she started her draft.


	3. The Real Monster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

Suyun curly up on the couch with the cat and a notebook and began writing:

People get quite possessive when death comes around. They misunderstand it. "How dare God take x person away from me." People don't belong to each other like possessions. They are all owned by God who wants his children to come back to him after life on earth. We are all here to do a set number of things and when it's completed he brings us home to rest. So God isn't taking anything away from you because it was never yours. 

While I should try to keep living to do my set number of things, depression is an ever evolving monster, one I'm tired of fighting. I can't outsmart it, it learns too quickly. I hate to disappoint God but I'm craving rest. Despite the disappointment I think he'll let me have it anyway. 

None of this was caused by any of you. I love you all so much. But I also don't feel like I owe it to anyone to live suffering. Don't blame yourselves, none of you could have helped me. None of you could fix my brain. I won't go into the specifics of my faulty wiring but its rather miserable. If you are angry at me just remember grudges just suck the life out of you. Move forward and strive to find reliable companionship. 

I'm going to leave to complete this task. I don't want to scar any of you with finding my dead body. But if I am found and identified please cremate me. I don't like the thought of getting gross underground. You are welcome to take my stuff if you want it. Just don't fight over any of it. For my money donate that to clean water charities. A check for that is sitting on my dresser. My bills are already paid. That should keep everything from ending up in a legal paper work limbo. 

I love you all and will see you in heaven. Seriously y'all need Jesus. You're a bunch of heathens, the best kind. 

Love Suyun

. . .

Once she came to a point where she had nothing left to say she started doodling in the margins. She was about to flip the page to draw a full picture when the cat climbed over the notebook to be petted again. Hyuk had been sitting on the other side and was curious about what she had written. He was hoping it was a story or a dear diary entry and not something boring like a grocery list, or work email draft. After repositioning to manipulate it so he could read his heart dropped and kept dropping. Wonshik had failed to mention the girl was suicidal. Maybe he hadn't noticed. It's not like humans could really fight off a hungry vampire. Hyuk wanted to run under someone's bed and shift so that he could cry but also felt like now he needed to guard her. Even though he had known her for less than 24 hours she was already a precious cinnamon roll that he wanted to keep. She had a kind smile and had been lightly chattering with him throughout the morning, talking to animals the way humans do. She didn't expect a response but she also wasn't patronizing. This inner torment didn't match the serene person she came across as. 

"Hakyeon, do you know when Hongbin will be back?" Hyuk asked his master through the link. His message came with an overwhelming sorrow that scared the witch.

"Why? What did you do? Why is your emotional state like that?"

"…what? No, no, it's nothing to do with me. Snack just needs a psychiatrist. Also found out her real name is Suyun." 

"How did you find that out? You haven't shifted have you?"

"No. sheesh, I'm not that bad. No, it's how she signed her suicide letter."

"oh….."

"yeah….."

"I'll text him."

"Thanks boss"

. . .

The front door finally squeaked open as Hongbin made his way down the stair to the living room. Hyuk had been napping on Suyun 's crossed legs as she drew designs in the notebook, but the second he heard the older boy's entrance he shifted into his half human state, snatched the notebook and ran up to Hongbin. Teary eyed he mumbled "see" and presented the notebook before moving to Hongbin's side and resting his chin on his hyung 's shoulder. Suyun gaped at the scene not sure of what just happened. Her brain had fogged over and she couldn't process what she saw. The cute black cat that had just been sitting in her lap was now a tall, black haired guy clothed in jeans and a t-shirt, also black. She watched the flick of his ears and tail. His pupils were slits rather than circles and his canine teeth were rather prominent. Comparatively the man next to him appeared to be a normal human. Or at least human because he was probably more gorgeous than most of the population. He had wavy chestnut hair, broad shoulders and a face that would be charming when smiling. Even in a frown though, he looked like a heart breaker. 

Hongbin read the letter, silently judging her grammar and spelling errors. Overall it wasn't a bad piece of writing considered most depressed people rant and have trouble organizing their thoughts. A few things stood out to him. The lack of use of names meant she didn't really care who found the letter nor did she feel profoundly connected to any of the recipients. At the same time she felt the recipients did not suspect her indifference and cared about her a lot. Judging by the wording she didn't want people to see her in what she considered to be a less than dignified manner. She tried to achieve this with hiding her vulnerable dead body and with the cold detachment to the grief that would follow. The religious context explained why she had no fear about where she would end up. She had no uncertainty. If no one interceded this would happen soon, probably soon after they released her. 

"Care to tell me more about the specifics of your brain wiring?" He said calmly crossing the living room to a chair opposite of her. She blinked trying to ground herself and tried to talk but no words came out.

"oh, sorry about him. If you stay here you'll see all kinds of strange things so let's address this and then get you home before you encounter anymore shock." Hyuk mimicked the sorry about him part, clearly offended, before curling up on the couch laying his head on Suyun's leg. Hongbin watched him with a look that showed he felt justified. 

He was already bored with this. He didn't need much info to surmise what her state was. He dealt with all kinds of disgruntled people. He would have to remember to get her insurance card when he dropped her off so he could at least get paid. He would make sure Hyuk covered any amount left over. His services weren't cheap. 

Suyun's mind caught up with her finally. "What are you guys?" She asked wide eyed. 

"Hyuk is our witch's familiar, I'm a dream walker/shrink. My name is Hongbin." he dropped the note book heavily on the coffee table. "Now,…Suyun right? Human, yes?" she nodded. "Symptoms you experience?" 

"I don't want to talk about it." she eyed him with shy suspicion. The whole encounter was making her feel like an insecure school girl.

"Do you want to go home?" He asked bluntly. she let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding in response and looked away. She went back to petting the cat's soft hair even if it was in human form now. 

"Suyunnie its ok. Sorry about Hongbin" Hyuk took the opportunity shoot Hongbin a glare in retaliation. "He's cranky from all the traveling he's done lately. He can help though. If you don't want to talk about it you can try the dream thing he does."

"I'm not really in the mood for a therapy session. I'm still trying to process…this" she said gesturing around the house. "Thanks though." she said sheepishly. She had already tried therapy and it was not helpful. Maybe her therapist just sucked. Meds didn't make much of a difference despite trying different combos for last few years.

Hongbin shrugged and ripped the letter out of the notebook to fold and stuff in his pocket. He then lazily walked back toward his room but turned before disappearing down the hall. "Hyuk, don't let Hakyeon wake me up to nag me about not taking care of this. Remind him he doesn't get to dictate the timeline on mental health issues. You're still on babysitting duty." He turned his glaze to Suyun and tried to soften his facial expression. "and you, Snack, everyone has been calling you Snack so that's what I'll stick with. If you want you can wake me up when you are ready for that therapy session or ready to try the dreamscape therapy." with that said he took his leave. 

"Snack huh?" Suyun leveled a glare at the cat who just grinned before pinning her down for cuddles and flipped on the TV. His grin didn't run deep but he didn't want to distress her with his worry and sadness over her. With all the startling exposure and shock he decided she should rest before the others got back to give her more shock. She decided not to fight it and just zoned out with the tall, cat like boy wrapped around her. Suyun barely knew him but she could sense an innocent, naïve side that she knew she could trust. She hated herself for knowing it was also a side she was going to wind up hurting in the end.

. . .


	4. Manners

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

The first to arrive home was the will o' the wisp. In a flash of green flame Taekwoon appeared and flopped down in a chair near the pair, raising an eyebrow at Hyuk 's cuddliness. The fae was a little muddy and still had his search and rescue gear on. He looked a little tired but even still looked like a model. His raven hair was parted and fell to the sides of his dark brown eyes. His tall and lean frame was unintentionally draped artfully over the chair. He wasn't even trying. Why were all of these supernatural people so fricking pretty?

"Hi hyung!" Hyuk called, excitedly hopping to the other side of the couch to greet him. He halted then wrinkling his nose and flattening his ears. "you smell like dog." 

Taekwoon rolled his eyes. "I like working in the canine unit so you are just going to have to get over it." 

He then introduced himself to Suyun. "We haven't properly met. I'm Taekwoon."

"I'm Suyun, nice to meet you." They exchanged shy, friendly nods before Hyuk kept chattering. 

"He's a will o' the wisp" Hyuk piped in "I take it no one got lost today hyung? You look drained."

"Nope, no calls today. I'll probably need to go sit around at the old folks home Hakyeon gets stock from to tide me over. Either that or have Hongbin sneak me into a mental ward. There's better confusion and fear there. I'll have to scrape by and maybe take a trip to screw with some hikers during my days off." Taekwoon's volume was barely audible. He had a soft voice that was slightly hoarse from weariness. 

"He feeds off the fear and confusion of the lost. Most of the time he also helps them get unlost too but not until he gets his fill." Hyuk explained as Taekwoon melted in the chair and turned his attention to the TV. Suyun was transfixed by the green ball of flame he was fiddling with. Hyuk noticed "Don't worry that's normal, it won't actually burn anything unless he's super pissed off. Just try not to stare too long, it will get you worked up."

Taekwoon looked between the two observers. Suddenly his expression hardened and he made the ball a little bigger. "Her nickname is Snack right?" He looked at her hungrily and Suyun started to feel disoriented and panicked. His eyes glowed bright green and his ears became elven in appearance. More little fires danced around the room creating rushing gusts of wind. Maybe she was imaging it but Suyun could hear trees thrashed in the wind and felt herself getting colder. Her skin prickled and she found herself doubled over on to the floor. She couldn't remember sinking to the rug but she was on her knees curled in a ball with her hands covering the back of her head. "It's not real, it's not real, it's not real" she kept saying to herself willing it to be over. Even though she was on the ground she felt like her sense of balance was tumbling around like a storm struck boat. All she could hear was the deafening wind. All she could feel was stabs of rocks and twigs as she fell. All she could see was darkness. She wanted to go home but she didn't know how or even where it was now. She was so cold.

And then calm returned. 

She remembered where she was even though she was feeling dizzy. It took a minute for her to hear again but when she sat back Hyuk was yelling profanities at Taekwoon and another person was twisting the elf like ear and pulling Taekwoon out of his chair. "That's no way to treat a guest Taekwoonie hyung. Naughty, naughty. Hyuk shut up already. You know I can win at a screeching contest. There's no need for all that. Now stop standing on the chair like that and get down. And you. Are you done now? Or do I need to keep twisting?" Taekwoon was whimpering at the pain and agreed to exercise more self-control. Once released the features brought on by the outburst receded, his eyes back to their dark brown, ears a normal curved shape. He looked more awake and content now. 

The new comer walked over to help her sit back down on the couch. He sat on the coffee table in front of her and held both of her hands. His thumbs traced small circles over them in a comforting manner. "It's ok. Big bad Taekwoonie will mind his manners now." He softly continued with reassurances before finally asking what her name was. "Suyun" she responded blankly, feeling more tired than scared. "Suyun is a pretty name. I figured your parents wouldn't name you Snack. I'm Jaehwan." He smiled a large smile and she looked up finally to greet him. But then she froze for the umpteenth time that day. Instead of human teeth his mouth was filled with shark like teeth. Too surprised to register that she was probably being rude, she stared at them. Luckily this just made Jaehwan laugh. "My lips look that kissable huh?" he stood, winked at her and then ruffled her hair before wandering off to the kitchen. 

At first Jaehwan had seemed to be a ball of sunshine. He was just as model like as the others, tall and lean, with a radiant smile and golden hair. But every time she looked over at him his skin looked greyer, hair darker, and golden brown irises cloudy white. It was like you could see the sun setting just by watching him. He returned with a plate of some organs she had seen in the fridge earlier. He plopped down in the chair across from Suyun and gleefully ate the suspicious looking raw meats. 

"Now who's not minding their manners." Taekwoon said dryly. Jaehwan laughed and held the plate out to him. "oh, sorry! Would you like some liver?" He joked while still chewing. Taekwoon scrunched his face in disgust and shook his head. "More for me" Jaehwan said wiggling a happy food dance. 

"Hyung, I think what he meant was that it's probably in poor taste to eat human in front of another human." Hyuk clarified. Suyun eyes widen and every muscle tensed. Hyuk shifted into full cat appearance and went back to sitting on Suyun 's lap. 

"But those people were already dead when I got these. What else am I supposed to eat?" Jaehwan squawked in protest. "I like it when we get alcoholics in the morgue. Alcohol saturated livers taste heavenly."

"Pretty sure you aswangs wouldn't know what heavenly tasted like even if it bit you on the ass" Hongbin said lazily as he appeared from the hallway. Jaehwan stuck out his tongue at him but then went right back to eating. "Any plans on what the rest of us are eating?" The dream walker implored to the rest of the group. "Also who is on vampire wake up duty? I call not it." He said with a yawn. This was followed by a clamor of 'not its' and argument about who was last. Upon realizing Suyun hadn't said anything it was debated about if they should send such a fragile creature to poke the bear. They had voted but the tie breaker came down to Suyun anyway. 

. . .


	5. Take Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

She and Hyuk wandered down the hallway and he released the seal on Wonshik 's door for her. "If you need us just scream." Hyuk gave her two thumbs up and ran away laughing. Annoyance turned to apprehension as she neared the monster sleeping under a pile of blankets. Last time she encountered him she thought he was going to kill her, but the others said that they said she should be relatively safe. 

"Wonshik?....Wonshik time to get up. You have to get ready for work" she tried but there was no response. She poked at the pile, nothing. She tried shaking him, nothing. She retrieved a cup of water to pour on him but before she could, he clamped down on her wrist, putting the water off to the side, never once needing to open his eyes. Still holding her wrist he jerked her over himself on to the bed and wrapped his limbs around her like she was a large teddy bear. "mmn, no, don't wanna" he whined, sounding like a little kid, even with his deep voice. He nuzzled into her, the bridge of his nose ran along her jaw. 

This was not the monster she was expecting to wake up. This didn't seem sexual assault-y like last time and she wasn't uncomfortable in the sudden embrace. Now that she was here it was tempting to stay but the others had given her a mission. She patted the arms fencing her in. "Come on sleepy head" she coaxed. "nnooo" he moaned back. "Come on. Are you hungry? Let's go get some food." After saying that she realized that technically she was the food. "Snack needs food." she whispered, poking his forehead. "mmnn…" was all that came out so she tried pinching the back of his arm. "mmnnmmnnmn" he moaned in a higher pitched complaint. "Come on, time to get up. Don't make me bite you." She threatened again forgetting that she was the food. He smiled and chuckled "cute." He then pretended to gnaw on her arm, careful to not break skin. It tickled and she twisted back and forth in his grasp. "Stop it weirdo!" she whined. He laughed triumphantly before contentedly drifting off again. Her mind was drawing a blank on what to do, especially what could be done from where she was trapped. Thankfully her stomach decided for her and rumbled ferociously. "Wonshik, get Snack a snack." she said, cringing a little at being cutesy, talking in third person and using the obnoxious pet name she was stuck with. He sighed and sat up right. "Fine, I guess we can find something for you to eat." He said ruffling her hair like a teasing older brother. This time he was fully clothed wearing sweats and a t-shirt. As he was plodded out of the room he took the covers with him, wrapping them around himself like a cape. It was a stark contrast to the bloodlust she had seen before. With him looking like an innocent overgrown kid it was hard to believe he was any kind of threat.

. . . 

"See, she survived." Hongbin stated upon seeing the two approach the dining room table. 

"You didn't break any records though. That still belongs to me." Hyuk said with a devious smile. 

"Because your methods are mean." Wonshik retorted. He counted the members of the household before asking "Where is Hakyeon?" 

"When I came home about a half hour ago he hadn't closed up the shop just yet. He's probably just up there." Jaehwan stated.

"Hyuk see if he'll get us take out." Hongbin said hoping it would be a yes. Hyuk looked down in concentration, then squeezed his eyes shut looking more and more concerned. "He's silent right now. He's either asleep or he got tired of me bugging him earlier." He explained with a frown. 

"He looked fine to me. That's weird." Jaehwan said. There was a moment of silence where they each looked at each other waiting for someone to speak. 

"Hyuk, let's go look for him. Judging by the way Jaehwan looks it's safe for me to go out." Wonshik finally said. There was no way the witch was sleeping on the job. Either Hyuk really over did it (in which case they would need supervision while making up) or something was extremely wrong being that Hakyeon was no push over in a fight. Wonshik knew his presence was needed regardless. As they left up the stairs, Wonshik chucked his blanket at Hongbin 's head. Suyun could feel the tension of the remaining individuals but they tried not to show it. It felt like their soundless waiting would last forever. 

"So, Suyun, what do you do with your time when you aren't being abducted?" Jaehwan asked, awkwardly trying to break the silence. 

"You mean my job?"

"Sure" Jaehwan replied.

"Well I'm a secretary. It's not very interesting. I answer phones, make copies, edit spreadsheet. I'm boss at excel." She responded. 

"That sounds….horrendously boring." Jaehwan said awkwardly. "I'm mean it's not for everyone. Do you like it?"

"Eh, it's ok. It pays the bills." She said with a bland shrug. It wasn't really the kind of job that would make her excited about going to work and definitely not worth living for. "and you said you work at the morgue? That sounds just plain horrendous." The snickers they emitted lightened the atmosphere a little.

"It's perfect for me. It's like working at a personal buffet. All the brains and livers and toes I want." He said with an expression that would look like sunshine if not for also looking like something you would never want to meet in a dark alley. 

"oh, okay" Suyun said with a dismayed expression. 

"yeah, he's disgusting. Don't eat anything he offers you." Taekwoon confirmed with a scowl that sent the aswang giggling. 

"Oh, um, speaking of work I do need to go back to it on Monday. People might start wondering where I am, if I don't. When would it be convenient for me to go home?" It was the question she had been stewing on all day. 

"About that…you can go to work but all other times you will be staying here. At least for the time being." They all looked at Hongbin in surprise. Suyun was taken aback, this was the first she was hearing of suddenly moving in.

"Care to explain?" Taekwoon inquired dryly. 

"Would you like to or should I?" Hongbin said, leveling a look at Suyun. 

"If this is about earlier, I really don't want therapy." 

"Well suicidal people don't really get a choice in that. You can stay here and work with me or I can drop you off at the hospital along with your letter as proof and you'll be on total lock down. Which would you prefer?" Hongbin's tone was resolute as if he wouldn't take any one trying to fight him on any other alternative options. Suyun rubbed her face and rested it in her palms. He had her trapped and she didn't want to admit it. It stung to hear the word out loud. 

"Wait, as in *blach* suicidal?" Jaehwan said while running a finger over his throat, sticking out his tongue and closing his eyes to accompany the sound effect. Neither party confirmed though. Suyun hid her face and Hongbin glared at her. Jaehwan and Taekwoon, who traded wide eyed glances, didn't really know how to react. 

Before they got any more detail though, Wonshik poked his head through the door. "Ya! We need your help up here. Not you though Snack. You stay here." His expression was serious and connotated something was really wrong.

Both Jaehwan and Taekwoon gave her squeezes on her shoulders as they passed. They were torn about leaving her in favor of handling whatever crisis was occurring on the next floor up. Hongbin hooked his finger under her chin to make her meet his eyes. He then tapped on her forehead. "Behave" He commanded. He jogged up the stairs after them and made it a point of her see him placing a seal on the door. Behave- that would be easy enough. Her emotions were getting the better of her so she went to hide under the covers of the bed she woke up on, hoping she could sleep the turmoil off. 

. . .

The sight would have been comical if Hakyeon was actually conscious and not looking unnaturally pale. He was stuck to the wall by spider webs. Broken glass, smashed containers and the witch's inventory were strewn across the floor. Cupboards were hanging open or ripped off the hinges. Shelves were bare of their contents, some even ripped off the wall or broken. It was a shock to take in. 

Hyuk was crowding him, trying desperately to wake him up. No wonder their youngest was scared. He wouldn't admit it but he did love his master and this was traumatic for him. "I've secured the area. Hyuk don't touch the webs, you will get stuck too. You guys look through Hakyeon 's spell books for something that will wake him up and he should be able to help you with the rest. I'll be back. I'm going to try to find the arachnid that did this."

"Do you want any of us to come?" Jaehwan asked concerned. Taekwoon added "You could use a spotter. You haven't had luck with bugs lately." 

Wonshik grimaced but ducked down to grab a bag of supplies from under the counter so they wouldn't see. He was slightly afraid of bugs, big or small. But with what it did to the head of their household the fear turned to anger. "No, I'll be fine. I'll call Taemin for back up if I need it." He said with determination, and rushing off into the night. 

. . .


	6. Patron

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

She looked normal. At least normal for a supernatural being trying to cover up extra limbs under her loose, plaid coat and long, yellow dress. She sported thick, round glasses and silvery braids. She had a very hipster-librarian feel to her look, especially as she inspected a book in the second hand shop she was patroning. She didn't look like the type that would ransack a shop and kill its owner. He pulled her in by her shoulder and in the opposite ear whispered "Come quietly and return what you took. If you help us with the antivenom I'll consider letting you go without punishment." The woman whirled around with a wide eyed gaze. "What?" She said with a confused expression and convincing innocence. She was a good actress but her scent didn't lie. He had been chasing it for the last half hour. 

It takes work to chase an arachnid. They are so light and strong that it often feels like the laws of gravity don't apply to them. They could use webs to get anywhere effortlessly and no else could use them without getting stuck. She probably stopped running to do the rest of her "shopping" because she thought she had made it away scot-free. 

"Don't screw with me. You shouldn't steal from an enforcer's home. It doesn't bode well for your lifespan." He said with a sneer that showed off his fangs. She gasped at the hint he had laid out for her and resisted as he started dragging her by her wrist out the door and down the side walk. "I don't know who you are or what you're talking about or what you think I did! Let me go! Really! Please!" She whined and pleaded. 

He rounded to face her with the intention of picking her up to make the trip go faster, but before he could, she licked her palm. She then wiped long, webby saliva on the vampires arm, still bare being that he had only bothered to put on shoes before leaving, and pushed him hard into the side of the building. "Asshole." she said returning a sneer that matched his earlier one, fangs and all. She laughed and then started crawling up the wall to flee. She underestimated Wonshik 's range of motion and he grabbed her ankle and threw her to the cement. She bounced back up and launched herself at him ready to bite. He landed a kick to her middle to keep her venomous maw away. With a thud she crashed into a tree and fell to the ground. When she looked up fear had overridden her smug demeanor. Wonshik growled at her and she sprinted away. In her haste she used a passing couple as a spring board up onto the next building over and receded out of sight. Wonshik gritted his teeth. This was going to hurt and if he was in any lower strength class than a vampire, it would be impossible. Bracing a foot against the wall he twisted and torn his arm away. Patches of skin came off but the damage wasn't going to stop his hunt.

Before following her he threw two thin tiles, each adorned with ancient characters, at the couple's heads. Instead of bouncing off the pieces absorbed into to their skin. He watched to make sure their eyes went unfocused as the short term memory resetting charm, one of his favorite enforcer tools, kicked in. Wonshik pulled out his cell and dialed Taemin. "Arachnid with disregard for secrecy pact, running north from Main and 8th. Attempted homicide.

"Got it. I take it this is you clocking in. Good 'morning' to you too." 

"She tried to kill Hakyeon so, no, not good morning." Wonshik hung up on Taemin's surprised string of profanities and licked at the bloody patches to close them. If he could help it she wouldn't survive the night. 

. . . 

Even with help from other enforcers Wonshik hadn't been able to get her before dawn. He felt dumb for thinking he could. It was like chasing wind and he needed to tap out and sleep now that the sky was growing lighter. When he walked in the door it was a relief to see that they had been able to get the witch detached from the wall. Hongbin was the only one left puttering around the shop doing his best to begin reintroducing order into the shell shocked space. "How is he?" Wonshik asked startling the younger from his task. 

"He'll live. Taekwoon got frustrated with trying to find spells or potions and just slapped him. Hard. He had a hand print on his face and everything." Hongbin said feeling half guilty for finding the whole thing amusing. 

"I bet Taekwoon enjoyed that a little too much." 

"Ha, yeah I think so. But it worked. Hakyeon walked us though making antivenom and dissolving the webs without needing to look at anything. He even knew what the spider type was. He had us make extra in case, but we won't need it will we?"

"I hope not." Wonshik sighed leaning on the counter. "She's out in the woods somewhere so hopefully Taekwoon will have better luck. Any idea what she wanted?"

"No, Hakyeon didn't see what she took and was too tired to look for it. He's down stair sleeping." They picked at the mess for a bit before Hongbin continued. "It was weird to see him so weak and vulnerable. It's usually him saving everyone else from their own stupidity and getting them patched up. You ever tell him this and I'll cut your head off but I forget how much Hakyeon does for us. It felt like he was taking care of us even though he was the one that got sucker punched. It made me feel a bit useless." Hongbin said trailing off in a mumble. 

"I think compared to him we all feel a bit useless. Happens when you are 627 years old. Not that I'll admit that either." Wonshik said to him smiling gently. "I don't think anyone else is going to try to rob us, it's almost morning. Let's go get some sleep." 

. . .

 

Wonshik yawned. As they made their way downstairs and walked down the hallway of bedrooms Hongbin hesitated by Hakyeon 's door. Wonshik gave him a questioning look. "She is in the right point of a REM cycle for me to poke around."

"Go for it. I'm curious too. It felt like she was just gave up on life yesterday." Wonshik said with a non-pulsed shrug. 

"Let's talk in here." Hongbin lead the way to his bedroom to avoid accidentally wake the other members of the household. He continued "Well she did. She was drafting a suicide letter today when I came home." Hongbin sighed and plopped onto his bed as Wonshik leaned on his friend's desk. "Poor Hyuk, he's had two death scares in one day. He was so confused about who to keep an eye on that we just put Hakyeon in there with her. She was already asleep. So I don't want to risk waking Hakyeon. He looked pretty rough." Wonshik rubbed his face wearily, taking in the new info. He didn't want to deal with this right now. "Great. A suicidal snack and people falling apart. That's just what I need."

"Before I forget, I didn't make it home in time to do a soft scrub on her memory. Taking her to the fairy district for a hard scrub will just make her mental health worse. You know, with that whole 50/50 chance of brain cancer thing, her chances would be higher since her brain isn't healthy. Our best bet is some type of non-disclosure spell. I'll be taking her on as a patient so we have time to work out the details I guess."

"You are?" Wonshik had confusion written on his features. "That’s unusual for you. How come you are being so nice and not pawning her off on some other shrink?

"For starters she avoided it when I tried to address her mental state. It pisses me off when people do that" He threw a look at Wonshik to let him know Snack wasn't the only one using the tactic. "Also   
I enjoy rebelling against Wufan."

"I get the first one, she's cute and you want to help, but I don't get how Wufan and Snack have anything to do with one another." Wonshik laughed at his cantankerous friend.

"Really? Wonshik, really? I said avoidance and you got cute? I'm annoyed, not attracted." He said, trying to refocus the vampire. "As for Wufan, he hates it that I use dream scaping on humans. He said if he catches me doing it he'll give me jail time for 'being a risk to the community'. He sent a raven with a notice to inform my type that mental tampering can be a violate the secrecy pact. That's what my profession is based on. 

"He doesn't technically have the authority to do that. He's strictly in charge of situation clean up. Also don't you fall under the commerce loop-pole?" 

"It’s a little murky. But something's got him all riled up. I think he must have watched that movie inception because he's been especially watching those of us that can influence people against their will. Probably because of the up tic in rouges. He must think we have something to do with it."

"That would actually explain a lot. Hongbin are you trying to rule the world?"

"Ha, ha, very funny. As if I need overt power to get what I want." 

"I think this whole pissing off Wufan thing is just a side perk. You like to act all callous and cold hearted but you're really just a big softie deep down. You like her and you're worried about her. That's why, isn't it?" Wonshik teased. 

Hongbin gave Wonshik a less than amused look. "If that's what you think, I'll send you the bill for her therapy then. She's your responsibility anyway. You brought her. You'll need to get her registered soon." he remarked coldly. "Congratulations you are a brand new pet owner. You know how to take care of a human right?" He added with smug sarcasm. 

"Wait what? Hold up. How did we get from point A to point B in this conversation? Since when do I have to adopt her? Why not you?"

"What? You think I would make a good pet owner? No, I would prefer to use the term slave owner." 

"Really Hongbin, must you be such an ass?"

"It's what happens when you question my degree of don't give a fuck." He replied. 

"I hate you." Wonshik moped and glared at the dream walker.

"Please, you're the one who is a softie. I bet you would have adopted her and asked me to help without me saying anything anyway."

Wonshik rolled his eyes as he sighed out. "Fine, fine, you got me, you cranky-ass bastard. But you have to deal with Hakyeon!" He said to get the last word before slipping out of Hongbin's door to retreat behind his own. He wanted to end the touchy conversation before Hongbin goaded him into volunteering for anything else. He burrowed into his blankets and found that he was actually happy about getting a pet. He would have thought it would be a dog or gargoyle but she was as cuddly as a puppy so that would be alright. 

Hongbin watched the Vampire go with a haughty smirk that masked the dejectedness he felt. It had less to do with wanting to ensure her wellbeing and more to prevent unnecessary guilt it would cause them should she succeed in her self-destruction. 

. . .


	7. Nine Volt Battery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hakyeon-witch, Taekwoon-will o' the wisp, Jaehwan-aswang, Wonshik-vampire, Hongbin-dreamwalker, Sanghyuk-Hakyeon's bratty feline familiar, Suyun aka 'snack'-human

Hakyeon felt cat paws pushing on his chest. He cracked his eyes open to see Hyuk stretching in the space between him and Suyun. "Cat, what do you want?" Hakyeon croaked out. Hyuk 's eyes shot open as wide as possible and he rushed up to Hakyeon and nuzzled his head into him. Through the mental link he squawked "That was too close! You can't go dying on me. If you die so do I! Don't go killing me like that! Dummy!" Hakyeon smiled. That's was as close as he was going to get to 'I was so worried about you. I love you. I don't want you to be hurt, ever.' 

"I love you too." He murmured and lazily petting the familiar as he curled up next to his master. He eyed the girl on the bed next to him, who was peacefully asleep. He was curious about her. "You'll like her. She's really nice" Hyuk said quietly to him. Hakyeon hummed in agreement. 

"Let's let her sleep, come on." The witch said while scooping Hyuk into his arms and rolling out of bed. Hyuk huffed out a sigh, begrudgingly letting Hakyeon have his warm fuzzy moment. The guy did almost die. They wandered into the kitchen where the witch started pulling things out to make breakfast. While he did so he gently rocked and softly serenading his familiar who was on the verge of another cat nap in his arms. They didn't notice Jaehwan reading the paper in the living room doing his daily analysis of the obituary columns. Hongbin's internal clock was a mess from all the travel. Upon giving in to being awake and coming across the scene he stealthily crept over to Jaehwan with a cringing quizzical look on his face. "What the hell is that?" he whispered to him pointing to the sight of his roommates' affectionate display. "Hakyeon being Hakyeon and Hyuk putting up with it. Look how happy that little faker is. I bet he's purring." Jaehwan whispered, flashing his day time, human looking grin. Hongbin shivered with cringing and stifled laughter. "Oh my god, this is so cheesy. I can't take this." Hongbin struggled out.   
"Don't worry I got this" Jaehwan said sneaking his way into the kitchen. He quietly synced by with Hakyeon 's tune and slowly got louder until the pair was startled by the added harmonization. He then started singing 'rock a bye baby.' Hyuk hissed at Jaehwan and bolted back to Hakyeon 's room. Hakyeon groaned in complaint and called after him "aww, Hyuk come on! Come back and cuddle with mommy!" The door slammed in answer to his plea. "Well that was nice while it lasted. I haven't been able to hold on to him for more than two seconds since he was a kitten. Teenagers, always embarrassed by their parents" The witch remarked. He shrugging off the maknae 's embarrassed reaction and ignoring the raucous laughter from the other two. 

"Mommy! What's for breakfast?!" Jaehwan asked, trying to win over Hakyeon with energy and aegyo. 

"Ooh, so cute. Whatever you make. Thanks for taking over" Hakyeon booped his other 'child's' nose and handed him a spatula for the eggs that were still not quite ready. The aswang stuck out his bottom lip in an exaggerated pout but didn't fight the older man on the delegated cooking duty. The way the oldest slumped down in a chair at the table told him that Hakyeon was struggling to hide how weakened his body really was. 

. . .

Suyun woke up to Hyuk pouting in his human form on the bed next to her. He was playing a muted game on his phone and looked like he was thoroughly absorbed in killing zombies. She scooted up closer to him to watch the game. He relaxed a little at her touch and let himself lose, deciding he would prefer to roll onto his side and hold her. 

"Not a morning person?" She asked blearily noting his expression. 

"The others are being assholes. I hate it when they treat me like a kid. I'm 86 years old. I haven't been a kitten for several decades." 

"86? How are you 86? You look my age!"

"And how old are you?" Hyuk asked, suspicious that he was in for more patronizing. 

"21. So I guess I'm the kitten here then?" She gave him a small smile and he returned it. 

"In human years I'm 22, so yay I'm not the youngest anymore." He teased. 

"How ancient is everyone else then?"

"Hm, good word for it. Let's see. Hakyeon is a whopping 627, Taekwoon is 597, Jaehwan is 333, Wonshik is 281 and Hongbin is 249." Hyuk listed off while putting down fingers as he went. 

"Ugh, I get it. I'm young." Suyun complained. Hyuk hummed a quiet laugh and pressed his forehead to hers. They snuggled for a while. She snuck a glance up at Hyuk who was now staring at the wall, looking pensive. "Where is your mind right now?" She whispered to him, brushing his chest with her fingers. "Did something happen last night?"

"I nearly lost Hakyeon." Hyuk whispered. "And if he goes, I go. I survive off of his magic." 

"You found him right?" Suyun knew that wasn't the 'lost' he meant but she hoped it might ground him to the present. He smiled lightly at her efforts.

"Yes, he's safe now. He got bit by a very big, very nasty spider. Hakyeon owns a shop upstairs and an arachnid woman attacked him and then robbed the store."

"Oh my gosh…" She said with worry. 

"It's weird, arachnids are usually peaceful and hate leaving their homes. She must have been desperate. I know you wanted to go home today but is there any way I could talk you into staying and helping us clean up?" His eyes searched hers, hopeful. 

"Sure, I suppose so." She said making up her mind. "I'll stay today to help you guys but I'm going home tonight." Hyuk wanted to ask about therapy and what the plan was after that but he sensed she would shut him out with that line of questioning. Maybe she had sensed his concern. There was a quiet minute before Suyun changed the subject. 

"Let's go get breakfast." She said and headed to the door. He pouted. "I don't want to go out there. They're being mean to me this morning."

Suyun pouted too. "but…I didn't end up eating last night."

Hyuk looked like he was having an inner crisis on deciding whether food or peace was more important for the moment. His mood was souring but he also didn't get around to eating either. He shifted into a cat and leapt up into her arms.

. . .

Hongbin's desire to stop the cheesiness was unfulfilled when the older two started singing together while Jaehwan cooked. Several songs later when Hongbin thought it might be safe he brought the oldest some orange juice and a shot glass of luminescent light blue liquid and took a seat next to him. "Finally, no! no! Jaehwan hyung don't start!...Finally done. I take it you are feeling better?"

"Mostly, but I still feel pretty drained." Hakyeon looked up with a tired smile. "And of course today is the day I get more inventory. Anyone willing to help out?"

Suyun wandered up to the chair on Hakyeon 's other side. She assumed it was him being as he was the only face she didn't know. He had a very graceful presence and sharp eyes that made his age believable. But with his bronzy, smooth skin and black messy hair he didn't look like he was any older than his mid-twenties. 

"If you want I'll help. Hyuk just told me what happened." Suyun said, "You'll help too huh?" She coaxed to the sulky cat she was carrying. 

"No comment, I'm just here for the food." Hyuk replied bitterly, not wanting to let the others think that he had forgotten their teasing. He didn't respond when Hakyeon ruffled the fur on his head but as Jaehwan brought food to the table he tried to do the same and he got a clawed swat to the hand and a growl before Hyuk jumped to his own chair and shifted to human form. 

"No Taekwoon or Wonshik this morning?" She asked noting the current number. 

"Wonshik sleeps during the day and Taekwoon is on duty, probably out looking for the arachnid in the forest." Jaehwan explained. "Dig in!" After a couple minutes of munching Hakyeon remembered to introduce himself to the new girl. "Oh, that's right, this the first time we've been awake at the same time. I'm Hakyeon. I hear Wonshik stuck you with a nickname. Would you prefer Suyun or Snack?" He voiced with an amused smile. 

"Whether or I like it or not I have a feeling the name isn't leaving so either is fine I guess." She shrugged with resignation. 

"Suyun then." He said with a warm smile. He gave her shoulder a reassuring pat. "Besides, I can't exactly use you as a snack. While I get this stuff from people" He said holding up and swirling the shimmering liquid "I only take it from people who can't do anything with the time they have remaining."

"What is it?" She asked eyeing it. 

"Life force, it's like liquid time." 

"So you take people's time?"

"Let's say you have a grandparent addled with Alzheimer's and they are past the point of really having quality of life. Would you say they have much use of an extra year or two? I don't take from those who are still aware of their time. I have a spell that can distill people's life force into a drinkable substance."

He took a sip and with a smirk added "Would you like to try it?" She looked nervous but reluctantly nodded. This was definitely morally grey territory. He had her hold her hand out and he poured a small drop onto her palm for her to lap up. It felt like a jolt of electricity had jumped through her, She felt a stinging on her tongue from where it made contact. It tasted like pears but as if you had been slammed in the chest by a pear tasting defibrillator. "That's probably about an additional couple of hours added to your life, or if you are sick or injured like a reset button. Depending on how much you have of course. 

"How often do you drink that?" She croaked, coughing to clear her throat. 

"I drink a little every day. This is probably a bit much but I need to heal."

"Every day?" She murmured incredulously. It made sense that he didn't seem phased by the electricity. He had been drinking the stuff for over 600 years. But still that was a pretty potent zap. "It's like sticking your tongue to a nine-volt battery. I haven't tried it but that's got to be it." She complained. Hakyeon laughed warmly in response. 

"Do the rest of you drink this stuff too?" She asked the others. 

"None of us need to. Hakyeon is the only one. He would have the same life span as a normal human without it even though he's skilled in magic." Hongbin explained in between bites. 

"So not just anyone can do magic then?"

"Short answer is that's correct, long answer is its complicated. There are types you can learn but others require innate ability. Like this" Hakyeon said and then the old Chinese characters on his skin lifted off and wrapped themselves around a napkin and folded it into a lily before returning to their places." 

"If you thought the rest of us were weird you've only seen the tip of the ice berg." Jaehwan bragged over a mouthful of pancakes. 

Hakyeon tucked the flower behind her ear and gave her a sheepish smile. "Pretty." he remarked.

. . .


	8. Dazzled

To say Vixxn's Apothecary was dazzling was an understatement. One half of the front room was a large bubble glass atrium filled with all kinds of wild looking plants and flowers, most of which look safe until she noticed the vine that moved by itself near the cash register. It was like an indoor meadow with common perennials growing in large raised flower beds rather than in separate pots. There were shelves lined with canisters of plant parts: powders and spices, seeds, bark, roots, whole sprigs of plants, dried flower petals, fruits and leaves. There were also jars of saps and little bottles of essential oils and materials for garden care. On the lower shelves were pots, vases and baskets for taking home plants. The walls behind the shelves, as well as the ceiling, were painted sky blue further making the place feel open. In the corner behind the register was a large cage with many small birds chirping brightly and framed in the middle of one wall was a live (but small) bee hive. This side of the store was peaceful and looked more like an enchanted florist shop than magic supply store. The more odd assortment of supplies was in the back, behind some traditional sliding doors. 

A rich, dark wooded book shelf near the main sliding door held books and scrolls on all sorts of different types of magic. On the other same wall but the other side of the doors was a large bulletin board with flyers advertising community events and classes and workshops in the magical arts. There was a glass faced fridge and freezer set along the adjacent wall filled with more of Jaehwan 's suspicious looking meats and mystery organs, premade potions, antivenoms, small bottles of the shimmery blue life force and a wide array of blood bags. On the opposite wall from this were tanks with odd looking fish and aquatic animals, frogs, reptiles, mice and insects, none of which Suyun wanted to spend too much time looking at. The fridges and the tanks cast off light that was of the same hue and lit the room from each side which made up for the dim efforts of a chandelier in the center of the room.

Along the back wall there was a poster rack in one corner full of diagrams and charts explaining things like star patterns and chi points. The other back corner housed a full length human skeleton. On the shelves along this wall were bins of small bones and dried animal parts, sets of origami paper that flicked a little even though there was no wind, card sets, bins of candles, inks, blank voodoo dolls, jars for sealing spirits, boxes that would rattle when someone walked by, binding papers, even cauldrons. On the wall were tribal masks and costume pieces. There were also locked display cases scattered around the room with that had talismans, charms, weapons, braided types of hair, horns, large bones, crystals, gems, hunks of metals and minerals as well as all types of polished stones.

In the center of the room sat two sofas facing one another with a coffee table in between. Hakyeon was made comfortable on one of them gently directing the work and occasionally drifting off. He had done the spells for broken glass and spilled items but now he needed a break and he had everyone taking inventory. He wasn't as concerned about the plants which had been left untouched. He said he would make the bees take care of that count at some later point since they were the most qualified. Nor was he worried about the side store room that had been sealed thankfully. It was a multipurpose room. It worked as an office, work bench area and storage for inventory. It's also where the most dangerous, valuable or volatile inventory was stored. The only further elaboration on the content was that the items needed to be asked for specifically by name before he would bring them out and were quite rare. That and she had not asked so they were safe. 

The front half of the store was counted by Suyun and Hyuk, who finished before lunch. It was the most human safe half of the store although they had still insisted she wear work gloves so as not to get stung or pricked by a stray piece of potent plant matter. The store was operational and it had been a peaceful morning even with the colorful mix of customers wandering in. Hyuk was the one to help them with their purchases. He had fully shifted away his cat like features even though most of their customers weren't human. Hyuk clearly resented having to do this. He whined that it dulled his senses to which Hakyeon zapped him through their mental connection and told him to act professional. The only way Suyun could tell that the two were bickering was that their facial expressions would change without visible cause followed by benign violence when they would walk past one another. 

Once Hongbin came back with take out the five of them congregated on the couches to munch on chips and sandwiches. 

"Anyone have any luck so far?" Hongbin asked setting lunch in front of the members of the house who circled in like vultures." 

"I don't know if I would call it luck but so far what I haven't found any braids made from manticore mane and that's on the list." Jaehwan reported. Hakyeon groaned and threw his arm over his eyes. "Figures" he whined. 

"I could be wrong Hyung, there is still another half of this room and it could have been knocked under something."

"Maybe" Hakyeon replied dejectedly. After a few moments of silence Suyun decided to ask, "What would happen if she had taken manticore hair?"

Hakyeon sighed and spoke as he thought of what he had seen it used for before. "Well a few different things. If it’s the only thing she took she probably isn't selling it. So she's using it in spell work. It’s a potent rage agent. It works great as a scrub for hard mineral build up on sinks and stuff. You can use it in potions to influence a person's anger, especially rebellious anger, and along with that manipulate them into making decisions they wouldn't make unless they are angry. Depends on how its cooked but it can't be used to inflame it or sooth it away. It can be used as an ingredient in a potion to regain memories. Its strong enough to dissolve a locked memory but so are lots of other things. I guess all of them would be a bit hard to come by unless you were willing to get wings from a still living hornets. Basically something from an entity that is angry, evil, poisonous and still alive at the time of the spell."

"Sounds like a pain in the ass but hornets are fairly common and free." Jaehwan mused.

"Not in winter." Hongbin reminded him. He blushed slightly but didn't let his confident look fold. "And wait, do you mean to tell me that this manticore is still wandering around somewhere?" Hongbin asked with a worried expression.   
   
"Duh!" a voice came from the side storage room. A trio of young men were standing in the door way. One of them whispered "Shut up Baekhyun." and one of them hissed when they were kicked by Baekhyun.   
   
"Hey Hakyeon!" A cheery brunette waved and detached himself from the group. "ah, Suho! You're late! I hope the solar winds weren't giving you trouble." Hakyeon said as he gave the group's leader a hug.   
   
"A little bit, but it's still just 11:45."  
   
"A little bit? We were going to be here at 7:00." One of his crew corrected.   
   
"Ok, a lot, thank you Sehun. Both of you go help the others please." He then turned his attention back to the shop keeper. "The boys are unloading the things you ordered. We've picked up some other fun things if you want to look."  
   
"Maybe next time. I'm not really feeling up to it right now. The kids can go look and put it on my tab though. Just don't let them buy anything dangerous or high maintenance." The two leaders chatted and caught up on how each of them had been doing since the last visit while the rest of the house hold rambunctiously followed the two crew men to the elevator. "Snack you have to see this!" Jaehwan said exuberantly. When they reached the open space of the roof Suyun craned her head so far back that Jaehwan had to catch her. Floating 15 feet off the roof was a large schooner. "Behold the SS Exo. It can go anywhere as long as they take the second star to the right and go straight on until morning." He whispered to her before dragging her up a ramp.


End file.
